


Revenge

by DawnMunn



Category: NCIS
Genre: Angst, Drama, Eventual Romance, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-12
Updated: 2017-07-07
Packaged: 2018-05-19 23:14:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,537
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5983888
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DawnMunn/pseuds/DawnMunn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Gibbs has a surprise when a daughter he suspected existed from a relationship years ago comes to DC from LA on a case. She soon finds out that her life as she knew it was all a lie. Can they get a father and daughter relationship as he helps her through the case and what happens when Tony catches her eye?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Revenge

Chapter 1.

Charlie had always known about her father, but her mother had never told her the full story, & she never thought that their paths would ever cross, but they were both in for a big surprise.

After leaving school in England she joined the Royal Navy, & really loved travelling the world, when the time came for her to leave the Navy she joined the police force, & became quite a high ranking officer.

It was during a case that she met her husband Nick, as she was investigating a murder, the victim turned out to be an American serviceman from the Navy, Nick was an NCIS agent in LA, & because he was already investigating this person for a case, the two cases became intertwined with each other. It was love at first sight for the two of them, & because of the way they missed each other so much when he returned home, he ended up persuading her to go & join him in LA.

When she first joined him in LA she really loved it, but when she started thinking about what she was going to do for a job, he suggested to her that she join NCIS, so she then had to admit the truth to him who her father was, & that she doesn't even know if he knew anything about her, & she knows that if she joins their paths could end up crossing, & she doesn't know if she'd be able to tell him the truth about who she is, but knows she would have to because of having his surname. He tells her not to worry about it, as if they have any cases that come up that needed any interaction with Washington NCS, and then he would keep her out of the way.

Over the years they built up a very happy life together, & a couple of years later they got married. Following that a couple of years later they went onto have a baby boy & girl, despite them getting married she also keeps her fathers surname within her married name. She admits that she wants to keep it in just in case her father did know about her, so he could find her, but she does say that she will remove it if they do ever find each other & they have a ceremony to renew their vows, & he gives her away as father of the bride.

After the birth of their daughter as soon as she returns back to work once again, & it's also to the start of a big case involving the whole team, plus her first encounter with a part of her dads team, because while they are waiting for replacements to their team they get joined by Ducky Mallard & Abby Schutto. The whole time they're with them; she prays that they won't work out the truth about her, & it seems like they don't manage too.

As things turn out, in the end she does cross paths with her father. It happens because as part of the case Nick has gone undercover, a few days later Ducky calls to tell her that they've got a body there in Washington which matches their case. So she then leaves the kids with their grandparents, & nervously heads for Washington, because she knows that if the cases are connected, then she is going to have to work with her father.

When she arrives in Washington, she first of all goes to see Abby, & because of having her back to the lab door she says"Hello Gibbs." She replies "Sorry not exactly Gibbs." As soon as she turns round & sees Charlie, she smiles & goes to hug her, and then she says "What are you doing here?" She replies "Ducky called to tell me about the body, because of it being like our case." "I knew he was probably going to tell you, but I didn't think you'd come." She says "There was no choice really, as Nick has gone undercover, so I was the only one available, so I left the kids with their grandparents & came straight here. I've not seen Ducky yet, as I thought I'd come & see you first, just in case it ended up being just a flying visit, especially as I also had to give you these." She then gets the pictures out of her bag which the kids have done for Abby. She then gives her another hug, & Charlie says that she'd better get to see Ducky.

As soon as she gets downstairs & to the mortuary, because Ducky is in the middle of a conversation, she stands in the doorway & just coughs, he turns & sees her, then tells her to come in. As she goes in he introduces he to Jimmy before giving her the autopsy report & says that as soon as he started finding consistencies between the cases, he had a feeling that her suspect had now moved into their area. While she's reading the report & he goes through things, all of a sudden she hears the words which she's been dreading as Ducky says "Hello Jethro." Even though she knows that she's got to turn round to be introduced, she still shakes like a leaf. So she turns round, but keeps her head in the report & pretends that she's still reading it. Then as she finally looks up Ducky says " Jethro this is Special Agent Charlie Gibbs-Jordan, this is who me & Abby worked with in LA, I called her because of our victim being very much like the case they've been working on there. They just look at each other & say "Hi." But she is slightly nervous that she might've given something away with the look in her eyes or something in her voice because of her shaking so much. Although what does help is that she then takes a deep breath, as she & Ducky then start to talk about how they think the cases are connected, but she's not got any idea why their suspect has moved to there, to bring her there. Just as she thinks she's something on the body that's caught her eye, Gibbs phone goes & he answers it "Yes DiNozzo?" She whispers to Ducky that she thinks she can see something on the body. He puts his mask down & gets some tweezers, then as he's trying to get whatever it is out her attention is bought once again to Gibbs as he says "She's right here." As he ends the call, she looks at him in a questioning way, so he then indicates that they should go outside, when they get out there she says "What's wrong?" He says "We've just had a report that your husband could be missing, as he's missed two check-ins. Your team have been & checked things out, but don't know from the state of things if he got out or has been caught. They were also concerned about your safety & checking that you'd got here because your house has been broken into." "What about the children & their grandparents, are they safe?" "Your team have got them safe." They then get interrupted by Ducky saying that they'd better come back again. As they do so they find what she saw in the body was a note for her, which is a threat saying that if she doesn't keep away from the case more people will get hurt, including those that she loves. Gibbs says "This means it's down to both teams now, you stay here, me & tony will go to LA & get what we can, & you can update us with the case later on, I promise that I will keep you & the children safe, & will get your husband back safe." "Thank you; there are the keys to my house. On there is also a key to a secret drawer in my desk, unless they found it, which has the case notes for the case & Nicks undercover stuff, as well as other things that might help." He then takes them off her & leaves.

While waiting for them to get back she goes to join Abby in the lab, when she gets there Abby of course hugs her & tells her to try not to worry about things too much, even though she knows it's difficult, but she knows that if Gibbs promised that he would keep them all safe & get her husband back, he will do it. She then admits to her that even though they've only just met, from what she's heard about his reputation, she's got every confidence that things will work out well. Eventually with them talking about various things, it's Abby that works out the truth about Gibbs being Charlie's father. As all of a sudden she says "I hope you don't mind me asking, but are you related to Gibbs, because of having it in your surname as well, or is he your father?" As she then sees the look on Charlie's face she then says "I'm sorry if I've just overstepped the mark. Charlie replies "Don't worry, you haven't. It's just I don't know if he knows about me, because yes he is my father. I've always known because it's been my surname ever since I was born, but my mother finally told me when I was eight years old, as that was when she married my first step-father & she didn't change it, so I wondered why. The reason I don't know what he knows is because she always stuck to the story that they just had a one night stand & I was the result of it. I also always knew that when I joined NCIS we'd probably end up having an encounter, but didn't think it would ever be in a situation like this. Which is also why I don't know what to do at the moment, as I don't want to just come out & tell him that he's my father, especially if he doesn't know about me, & I'm really not sure how to tell him anyway." "You'll find a way to do it, as I'm sure he'll be very proud to have you as his daughter." "I know he probably will be, but there's also the thing of the children being his grandchildren, & if by any chance he sees them while they're in LA, Andrew might give something away, as at the moment he keeps introducing himself with his full name, which of course includes his grandfathers name as his middle name. Although I do have a feeling that I might've already given something away myself anyway, because of the way I acted when Ducky introduced us earlier, but I now that he does have to know the truth, because after all it is son-in-law that he has to find." "I'm sure that it will all be fine in the end, & I promise that I will try not to give anything away to him. Of course what the two of them haven't realised is that while they've been talking, Gibbs has been standing outside & has heard the whole of their conversation, & he does now know the truth about Charlie.

After composing himself for a couple of minutes he then goes into the lab, as soon as she sees him Charlie says "Is everything ok?" He then puts down her lap top & files onto the table, then replies "Things are fine, it was just a bit of a mess & they'd searched the study well, but the lap top seemed to be untouched, Abby & McGee will still check it over though, just in case there are any bugs or anything on it. There's still no news about your husband, so we've left your team checking where his last known places were. So I think it's probably about time you got some rest, & I think the safest place will probably be with me." As he then goes to the lab door, he then adds "With a couple of others." As the door then opens, her son Andrew comes running in yelling "Mummy!" Then after that the thing that really does bring a lump to her throat, is seeing him take Rosie out of Tony's arms & carries her in, as he says "I thought you'd like to know that these two were safe, & we will all keep them safe." While she & Abby have been hugging Andrew, he then notices that Abby has put the pictures up, so he says "Mummy you gave Abby our pictures." Abby then whispers "Thank you" in his ear, & gives him another hug before they leave.

After getting the kids settled down at Gibbs house, Charlie then goes downstairs to find him; he's in the kitchen & has just made a coffee, as he gives her a look of "Do you want one?" She nods & goes over. When he's made it they both go into the lounge together & sit on the sofa, she says "Thank you for all of this, as I now that you didn't have to do it." He replies "I did, because I know." "You overheard me & Abby talking?" "I did, but it confirmed what I already suspected." "You knew about me?" "I only knew after you were born, as your mum sent me a letter & photo of you. I did want to be a part of your life, but she disappeared, & I couldn't find you." "I did wonder why she always made me keep your surname, but I suppose after she married three times it would've been a hassle to keep changing it. I did always have a feeling that things were more than a one night stand, which she told me it was." "I think it might've also been because she wanted to make you traceable, even if she did disappear. We were in love, as we met while I was posted in England, she didn't want to come back with me when I got posted back here, which was when she had you. Although I never thought that I would find you, then I heard the rumour of a Gibbs being in LA, but of course I only knew you as Charlotte, & that it was apart of your married name." "I never did think I would find you or you me, because after leaving school I went into the Navy, then after completing my service I joined the police, which was how me & my husband Nick met, because I was working on a case that made him come & join us. As we fell in love, I came & joined him in LA. Once I got settled & started to think about what I could do for work, he suggested that I join NCIS, because I was more than qualified & experienced, which was when I told him about you. He then told me that I should be open when I was ready to be, as we never knew if our paths would cross in a case or something. I kept Gibbs in my name, as I felt I should in case we did meet at any time, plus of course I had also got used to everyone calling me Gibbs as well by then. Plus of course I gave Andrew his grandfather's name as his middle name, as I had always said that if I had a son he would have his grandfather's name in it. When I got back after having Rosie, it was straight into doing this case. Then when they told us about Abby & Ducky joining us, I had a feeling that something might come out, if they got curios about things, or if you did, if you called at anytime while they were with us. I knew it would have to come out once Ducky called me here, & when he introduced us I have to admit that I was shaking like a leaf. It did also make me wonder how much you did actually know, as I did spot the look in your eyes when he introduced us." "I only new you of course as Charlotte, & did try to find you when you were about sixteen, with no luck & again at various times over the years. I then heard the rumours of a Charlie Gibbs in LA & was trying to get out there, then of course Abby came back full of talking about you, so I was more than certain it was you. When Ducky introduced us I knew for certain it was you, because you have your mother's eyes." "Even with having told me that things were just a one night stand, I did always wonder, as over the years she did keep telling me I was very like you in certain things, & each time I was at home on leave & things she said I was getting more & more like you. "What happened to Maggie?" "She passes away from cancer about twenty years ago now." "I'm sorry, I know that we do have a long way to go, but I hope that we can become a family now, even if you do go back to LA after all this is over. I do promise that we will keep you all safe, & will bring Nick back safe. However long it takes, because you & my grandchildren will always have a home here." For the first time she breaks down & he hugs her.


	2. Chapter 2

Following Charlie and Gibbs talking for hours, she’d finally found herself in bed and asleep. It had only been for a couple of hours or so when she got woken up by Rosie screaming. As she goes into the room where the two of them are sleeping and picks Rosie up, she then sees two large eyes peeking out from under the covers at her. Before Andrew can say to her “She woke me up mommy.” Charlie says “It’s ok. Let’s go and get some milk and you can then both go back to sleep again.” Rosie then says “I had a bad dream. The monsters had got daddy.” Charlie replies “It’s ok. We’ll all be safe and will get him back soon, I promise.” As all of them head downstairs they find Gibbs in the doorway at the bottom of the stairs. Andrew then says to him “Rosie had a bad dream and woke me up. So we’ve come to get some milk.” Gibbs then takes Andrew’s hand while Rosie remains in Charlie’s arms. And Gibbs then sorts the hot milk out for them all. When they’ve drunk it Andrew lies down in Charlie’s lap and Rosie cuddles up in Gibbs arms. Charlie then says quietly “I’ve got a feeling that we might end up having a few nights of this, seeing as we’re all in a strange place. Not only that when Nick has been away from us in the past he has still found a way of talking to the both of them. He’d even find a way of doing it if he was undercover. So this is the first time that they’ve not heard anything from him.”

Gibbs replies “I heard the scream and was just up to see if everything was ok. I guessed that it might be when it all went quiet again. I do mean it though I am here for all of you, no matter what. In a few days if things are a bit more settled and you’re safe I’ll see if we can’t get you back home again, so that you can pick up some more stuff for you and them. So that hopefully you can then have some stuff that will make you feel safe and more at home.”

She replies “Thanks. As I’m sure that will probably be a big help.” Once both the kids are fast asleep again, she and Gibbs then take them back upstairs and put them to bed again, before they head back to bed and going to sleep themselves.

 

The next morning when Charlie gets up she can here voices downstairs, so she heads to the bathroom to get showered and dressed. When she goes down to find them all in the kitchen she finds that Gibbs has managed to get the two of them both up and dressed. As soon as he sees her he asks “What would you like for breakfast?” She answers “Just some toast and coffee thanks.” Then just before she joins them at the table she gives both of the kids a kiss on top of their heads. As she sits down she says “So what’s the plan for today?”

Gibbs answers “Well in a while Bishop will be here to pick these two up and take them into the Navy Yard. As I think keeping you travelling separate may be the best way to go, so we’ll go ourselves after we’ve given them some space to get in. That way I think that if you are by any chance being watched they will think that it is because you’re all being guarded by us, rather than you actually helping us to work the case. And hopefully we can also then work trying to find Nick alongside everything else. So as long as Abby and McGee give your computer the all clear you can then bring us all up to speed with everything. Especially as we don’t know how much your case is going to have an impact on Nick’s disappearance.”

She says “Thank you for allowing me to keep going, as I do want to keep busy.”

He replies with some caution “As long as you make sure that you do also take some rest, especially as with last night you’ve not really had much rest all in all.”

She says “I promise that I will rest and if I don’t then you’ve got my permission to tell me off and tell me to get some rest.”

 

When they get to the Navy Yard she does get the all clear to use her laptop. As not only have Abby and McGee given it all a good check over. McGee has also put some extra protection on it just in case whoever it is tries to get into it once again. When she takes them over everything with the case Gibbs tells her to use his desk as she does it. She then explains how the case had been a joint op with the FBI and that had then led them to catching the leader of the gang. A second person called Stefan Davis had been in custody, but they had ended up having to release him because they couldn’t prove his involvement and had to release him. He was a former marine and had been bought to their attention through being a suspect in some burglaries on the base he’d been based on. At the same time Nick had found an account which they thought Stefan may have been using to siphon off the money that had been found during the joint FBI case. As the leader of the gang Greg couldn’t tell them anything about the money going missing they knew that Stefan had also been conning the gang. Not only that from looking at the tracking software that they had been using she could see that there had been more movement on the money since she’d last looked at it. Then after that the murders started. At first they hadn’t made a connection to it being Stefan because he had covered his tracks really well. But on the third murder he made a slip up and had managed to leave a finger print. Somehow though he always seemed to be a step ahead of them and each time they discovered his hideout, he would be gone within minutes of them having got there. But now of course he was targeting her and the family and she hadn’t got any clue why. When she finishes Gibbs takes over and tells McGee to keep monitoring the accounts and to also go through Nick’s case files to check that Nick hadn’t missed anything. While he, Tony and Bishop would go over everything concerned with Nick’s disappearance. And Charlie could over everything that pertained to the reasons why he could now be targeting the family.

 

Later on after having a break that she also has with the kids, as Charlie heads back again and has the things she’s been going through that morning in her head. When all of a sudden she thinks of something and goes rushing back to the desk. As she finds what she was thinking of Gibbs goes to her and asks what it is. She then says that she thinks she might have found something but she needs to get in touch with her old police force. Because she has a feeling that the connection might be with an old case of hers or even the case that she and Nick worked on. But she will need to see her old files, that’s of course if they’ll let her have them of course. So he tells her that if she does have any problems in obtaining them then she only needs to shout. Luckily she does get hold of them, but it is going to take time for everything to come through.

 

At lunch time everything finally catches up with her and she has a splitting headache. So after taking something for it Abby sets up the futon in her office for her and she then crashes out. After a while when he comes looking for her Abby says to him “She was complaining of a headache so she’s crashed out next door.”

Gibbs replies “Ok just let her sleep. She didn’t get much sleep last night because we talked into the early hours. Then just as she finally got some sleep Rosie woke her up with a nightmare.”

Abby says “So she told you then?”

He answers “I sort of already knew. But she did tell me as well and we talked.”

Abby says “I’m glad that she did say something because she is one of my best friends and I did really want her to come here.”

He says “She will be staying here because she now knows that she’s got family here. And of course I do want to get to know my daughter and grandchildren. Let her sleep and I’ll come to wake her up if she’s still asleep when it’s time to go home.”

 

In the end Charlie ends up sleeping all the afternoon. Although Abby does end up calling Gibbs down when Charlie starts to talk and twitch in her sleep. He then quietly tells Abby to leave them in private when he gets there and with knees popping as he gets down to the floor, he sits there stroking her face. When she ends up waking with a jump and starts crying, he takes her into a hug. As she starts to settle he says “I think it’s time that you called it a day, get your stuff and I’ll take you home. DiNozzo and Abby can bring the kids back later.” When she gets back upstairs again to collect her stuff she notices that they’ve been looking through some pictures when she all of a sudden stops in her tracks and says “Tony what are they?”

He answers “They’re pictures which the team from LA have just sent us. It’s Nick’s last known location, why?”

She says “Can you get a clearer image of the papers?” McGee then takes over and get’s the picture she’s looking at as clear as he can possibly get it and they can then only just about see what’s on them. So Gibbs then asks “What is it?”

To which she answers “I’m not sure as I can’t see it enough and I’m not going to get my hopes up. But Nick could be sending me a message to let me know that he’s safe or possibly where he might even be. Because we sort of worked out a code that only the two of us knew if we ever got captured, escaped or where we were. This code we kept quiet and only between ourselves so we know that it can’t be copied or forged. From what I can see of it, it looks like the code for safe, but I can’t see enough of it to be sure of it.”

Gibbs says “Ok you’re still going home. McGee keep working on it and see if you can get it any clearer so we can have another look in the morning. DiNozzo you and Abby can bring the kids home later on. So let’s go.”

Charlie answers “Ok, ok I’m coming!” As he starts going on ahead of her saying “Come on!”

 

When they get back to the house again they find a small package with letters addressed to the two of them on Gibbs doorstep. As she looks at it she says “It’s from Nick I know his writing.” When she opens her letter it explains that Nick managed to find out about Stefan setting him up and he got himself out of there. He hasn’t had much chance of being able to check, but the last he heard was that Stefan was either dead or had just been left unconscious. He himself has managed to stay close to the group still, but isn’t going to make himself quite so obvious. In the package are phones for both herself and Gibbs, then every few days he will send them new ones in case they’re being traced. He’ll be using them so that he can do quick messages for the kids. Plus if he got anywhere with any leads for them or anything else that may be useful to them he’s get it touch with either her or Gibbs. For now what he would give her was that if she hadn’t got the police files then she should do that. Because he’d found out that Davis wasn’t actually Stefan’s surname. He’d somehow used the Davis surname so that he could get himself into the US and has a feeling that they may be able to find out his real surname from her old documents in her final case for the police force. In Gibbs letter he said the same kind of thing. Adding that most probably the two of them now knew the truth of their relationship and that he really hopes that Gibbs will look after his family for him. They weren’t to worry about his parents either because he had made sure that they were being kept safe. He would also ensure that he would either organise something for them to meet up if he discovered Stefan’s ware bouts or he would send them a text or call them.

 

After that even though she is still a little worried about Nick’s safety, she does feel a little bit easier about things and is also looking forward to being able to hear his voice later on. They then just have a quiet night with the kids after Tony and Abby bring them back later on. Just as she’s settling them down before bath and bed time Nick does his call. They first of all speak quickly before she passes him onto the kids to talk. Then after the kids finishes they have a quick proper talk. She assures him that she and her dad are getting on very well but that there is still a long way to go. He says that he’s sorry that she and Gibbs meeting had to come under such circumstances, but he hopes that the whole event will bring them closer together. Especially as she needs to be strong to get through it all. Just before they say goodbye he promises that he will try and call her every night if he can. If not he will try to text instead. He then adds that he’s sorry that he won’t be around for their anniversery but he will try his best to still try and do something for it.

 

When she finishes on the phone she gets the kids and into bed, before she then has a soak in the bath herself. After getting dressed in just some sweats she then goes on a hunt for Gibbs and finds him with the boat in the basement. They then talk and she admits about them having woodwork in common, as she was always a tom boy when she was a child. Then when she got to school she ended being the only girl to actually take woodwork. But then of course had to give it all up when she went into the navy. It was when she got into the police that she started up again, following long cases and not being able to sleep. But she admits that the biggest projects that she had done was just stripping down old furniture to make it new and also making the kids their cots. Although she was beginning to think that it was looking as though she was going to have to attempt a tree house for Andrew as he was just getting interested in one. He then says to her “Well you’re more than welcome to come down here and work on something if you want to. And perhaps even if when you go back home again we might be able to work on something for the both of them together, as I hope that you will be back again for visits?”

She replies “I promise that we will be because I’ve now finally found my dad and there’s no way that I want to loose touch with you now. Not only that I really love Abby and she is one of my best friends and I’m also starting to make friends with the others as well. So I don’t want to end up loosing touch with any of you.” Because of the way that she’s been sitting on the stairs as they’ve been talking, he goes over and joins her. As they hug he kisses the top of her head and says “I’m glad about that.” They then get disturbed once again by Rosie screaming and Andrew shouting. When the two of them get to the room in a rush Andrew says “We heard noises outside and looked out. There was someone out there, daddy then appeared. I think he might have shot at whoever it was as we heard a bang. The both of them then ran off.” Gibbs then gets on his phone and says “DiNozzo get Bishop and McGee over here now, there’s been a prowler.” When he’s finished on it and snaps it shut he says to her All of you go into moms room together and stay there. I’m going to have a check round and make sure it’s safe and I will lock you all in. Then all of you stay there until I tell you that it’s safe.”

Charlie answers “We will do and be careful yourself.” He then goes off and she gathers the kids together to go into her room.

 

As Gibbs and the others come into the house he yells up the stairs that it’s safe for them to come out, so she gathers the kids together again and they go down to join them. After settling the kids on the sofa she joins the others in the kitchen as Gibbs says “We think that Nick scared them off. As there’s no sign of anyone out there. The kids were also right about hearing a shot as he managed to get them. They were hurt but we don’t know how badly. McGee’s going to take the sample back to Abby to check DNA to make sure it wasn’t Nick but it was from the direction he shot to. Bishop is going back to check hospitals and any gun shot injuries that come in. While DiNozzo is going to stay with us so we’ve got an extra guard with us here.” Just as he finishes saying it while McGee and Bishop Leave the phone that Nick sent to Gibbs starts ringing. After a quick conversation and ending the call Gibbs then says “He’s safe and it was Dean that he shot. He followed but lost him so he doesn’t know how badly hurt he may be. He’s going to text me the known addresses that he has for Dean so we can check them out in the morning. Dean was the one who showed him the ropes when he first went into the gang undercover. For now though I think it’s time that we all went and got some rest.” As they’ve been talking the kids have of course fallen asleep on the sofa. Gibbs picks Rosie up and as Charlie goes to pick Andrew up Tony says that he’ll do it, she thanks him and after getting them settled back in their beds they then all go and do the same.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As Charlie starts to become suspicious about her husband as the case progresses will she find the perfect person to confide in with Tony?

Revenge.

 

Everyone is up very early the next day and head into the Navy Yard. As they all prepare to go to the address that Nick has given them. Because of knowing that she’s not going with them even Charlie finds herself feeling nervous about them all. When Gibbs comes back to them and says “Let’s go.” As they all do their final preparations he hands her a kit bag and vest as he says “Vance has given you clearance to be apart of the team now, so come on you’re coming with us.”

 

When they arrive at the place Gibbs, Tony and Charlie go through the front while Bishop and McGee take the back. They then find Dean pretty quickly and Gibbs soon arrests him. While he’s getting the cuffs onto him she and Tony hear a noise, so the two of them go and search. As they go into the room next door they find a woman sitting on the bed. She then flies at the two of them and they end up having a bit of a struggle. As Charlie gets her into a position that she can get the cuffs on her, the woman somehow still ends up knocking Charlie’s hand and her elbow then goes straight into Tony’s eye. When she then eventually gets the woman onto the bed again she apologizes to him. As they then take her out and Gibbs notices Tony’s eye and asks what happened. He answers that his eye got in the way of her elbow during the struggle.

 

By the time they get back to the Navy Yard again and while Gibbs is preparing for the interviews. Charlie gets notice that the files from London have arrived, so she gets them and starts to go through them. As she does so she does find out that everything is connected to that final case she worked there. She also finds out that Stefan’s real name is in fact Lesley Mitchell and that he’s got a very long criminal record. In the case she worked it was his brother that she had arrested for fraud and murder. As she goes over the current murder she makes the discovery that Stefan’s method is exactly the same as his brother’s one. But she does know that she did put the right brother away at the time because of all the forensics they had. As she researches things more she also discovers that Stefan’s brother had been killed in some prison riots. So she starts to wonder if that is the reason why Stefan is targeting her as he blames her for his brother’s death. Because of having the files there from her and Nick’s first case together she also starts to go through those as well.

 

Later on she takes a break from things and after checking on the kids first she then heads to observation to watch Gibbs doing the interrogation of Dean. Even if he’s staying quiet she can tell that he is getting very close to opening up. Gibbs then leaves things with leaning very close to him and being right in his face and saying quietly to him. That because of the forensic evidence they have against him he’s going to be charged with trespass and attempting to break into a federal agents house and because of it being a federal offence he will be going to prison for a very long time. He then walks out leaving Dean alone and at the same time she walks out of observation so that they can go back upstairs together.

 

That afternoon before Gibbs goes back to interrogation again they go through what she found out from the files. As she goes through the various names connected to the people they know about McGee puts them into the system and they get hits on them all. But when she starts going through her own files on the case she starts to find inconsistencies between her ones and Nick’s files. At first she doesn’t want to admit it to herself but she starts to wonder if she could have been played all along. Because of the way she does feel so uncomfortable about things as Gibbs comes and orders them to pack up for the day. She calls her old team in the UK to order the paper copies of everything so that she can double check it all. Then of course with it all playing through her mind at home that night she’s a bit quiet. And when she later on gets the call from Nick she finds it really hard to keep her pretence up with him and not to give anything away about what she’s found. 

 

That night because of everything that’s running through Charlie’s head she really struggles to get any sleep and ends up getting up during the early hours to get herself a drink. Because of Tony being in the house as well with his turn at being guard she also makes him one too. After making the drinks and handing his to him as she joins him sitting on the sofa she says “I’m sorry again about the eye.” Because even in the poor light of the living room she can really see that it has become a real shiner.

He replies “its ok, just one of those things. Although remind me never to get on the wrong side of you ever. Anyway are you sure that you’re ok, as you did seem to be a bit quiet tonight?”

She says with a sigh “It’s because and I really hate to say this. But I suspect that my life has been a lie.”

He says incredulously “What? Why?”

She answers “I don’t know why, but I have a feeling that I’ve been played by Nick. I started going through all of the files that I got sent from the police in the UK from the case that we worked on together. There seems to be a lot of difference between our reporting of everything. I’ve also been checking through case files from some cases we’ve worked together in LA and ordered the paper copies just to double check things, but they seem to be the same as well. The only thing that seems to be true in my life at the moment is the kids I love and of course getting this reunion with my dad. I hate to say it but I have this really strange feeling that Nick could be a rogue agent.”

He then asks her “Do you want me to go over everything as well just to double check for you? Because I would really like to help if I can.”

She answers “I would like that thanks. Then at least that way I won’t be feeling like I’m going completely mad over all of this.”

He then asks her “So what are you going to say to Gibbs?”

She says “I don’t know yet. If you do find the same thing as I did when you have a look at it then I might say something. It’s just that I’m so worried about letting him down. Especially as I know that this will most probably end in divorce and a failed marriage. I really love my job, but how am I going to be able to cope with it if I’m a single mom?”

He replies with seriousness “You wouldn’t be letting anyone down. Plus he himself does have a couple of failed marriages under his belt as well. We are all family and we all will help you with the kids as well whenever you need it. Abby would especially love to help you when you need it. Not only because she’s that kind of person anyway, but because she does really love all of you to. I never thought I’d ever say this because me and kids have never really gone together, but I do really love them as well. Well other than being teased as I was tonight. Because you missed them teasing me about the black eye. Then Gibbs made things worse by telling them that it was you that had given it to me. So Andrew now thinks it’s funny that I got a black eye from a girl and that that girl was his mom. But if you do really feel like you can’t say anything to him yet I will be here to help you through this as much as I can be.”

She says “Thank you Tony. Especially as I don’t really know how much longer I can keep this pretence up about what I’ve found out, especially from Nick. Because I felt really sick during tonight’s call to him and tomorrow it will be even worse because it’s our wedding anniversary. Anyway thanks for listening, but I think I’d better go to bed otherwise dad will know that there’s something wrong. I’ll see you in the morning.” As she gets up she gives him just a light kiss on the cheek before heading for the stairs as he says to her “Ok Night.”

 

Of course as per usual Gibbs has managed to hear some of she and Tony’s conversation. So when he senses that she’s got upstairs he comes out from the top of the stairs to the basement and then joins Tony as he says “What was all that about?”

Tony replies “She has a feeling that she may have been played by Nick for all the time that they’ve been together. She thinks that from what she discovered today from going through those files and things that he may be a rogue agent. I’ve offered to go through it all as well to check it out for her. She’s scared of saying something to you for the moment because of the two of you only just reuniting. Especially as she thinks that it’s going to be heading for divorce and that she's going to end up as a single mom to the kids.”

Gibbs admits as he says “I’ve been trying to investigate him ever since I met him which she doesn’t know about. I think it’s a mixture of my gut feeling and wanting to protect her as her father. But there’s just something that doesn’t feel right about him. As far as I could get so far he just seems to have got an average record. But that has only been since he went and joined her in London. How he’s managed to fool her but the team in LA as well I really don’t know. I haven’t had the chance to ask Ducky anything yet. But I found a report of his brother going missing around the same time as he made his appearance in London. I haven’t got any proof yet. But I was wondering I it was possible that they could have been identical twins. That he’s then somehow pulled a switch and is really the missing brother. So I was going to ask Ducky if there was any way we could prove that this has happened through finger prints or DNA. But of course DNA would probably take that little bit longer than normal to do because of it being such a close match between them. Go with her and support her as best you can through this for me and just let her come to me when she’s ready too. Plus give her the assurance that she doesn’t need to get through this on her own and that we will all be there for her, especially if she does end up being a single mom. When I saw Vance about making her a temporary member of the team he did say that if we wanted to change it and make her a permanent member he would do that as well if I went to him for it. So she will have both a home and job here if she does really need it. I also have a feeling that if Nick is an imposter he knew it was coming. Because during the meeting and when we talk on the phone he’s constantly going on about us supporting her through all of this because she needs to be strong. The biggest day that we’ve got to get her through is of course tomorrow with it being their anniversary. As I think we’re going to have to be close to her when he calls because even if she is stronger than we think she is. I do think that when she finds out the truth keeping up the pretence of loving him still is going to get hard for her.”

He says to Gibbs earnestly “I promise you Gibbs that I will be here for her and I will support her through everything. What are we going to say to the others?”

He replies “When she’s ready to let them in with what’s going on we will tell them. But for now if we do need any help from them then we will just have to think of a cover story. I think for now though we’d both better try and get some rest. But for now if she doesn’t come and talk to me about things, on the quiet just keep me updated with what’s going on.”

Tony replies “I will do, I promise boss.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Charlie is finally open and tells Gibbs the truth about her suspicions about Nick, as she and Tony also start on the investigation to find out the truth. Is she and Tony's relationship starting to changing into something more as well?

Revenge.

 

The next morning when they get into the Navy Yard she gives Tony everything that she has so far and also sends him all the electronic stuff she has as well, and he begins to look over it all while they’re waiting for the other stuff to come through. Even though she never heard what Gibbs said about the twins’ possibility the idea also comes to her and she does some checking and makes the discovery by looking at news reports and things when she finds out about Nick’s missing brother Simon. She then goes down to autopsy and talks to Ducky about it possibly happening and could they have swapped places without anyone realizing including their parents. He tells her that it could happen especially if they were so identical that you couldn’t even tell them apart looking closely at the two. And of course it had happened but they had distinguishing marks that someone could tell them apart by those, then as long as they were in a place that could easily have been covered up then they could also do that. Especially if he had also made the subtle changes as well to his personality so that he was more like his brother then no-one would probably know the difference between them. The only way that they would be able to find out the truth would be via his finger prints and DNA which they have in his NCIS file because of them being on everyone’s file. Unless of course they pulled the switch before that. The only way they would be able to tell with that would be either when they caught him and then tested both or if they did a DNA test on the kids, which she admits that she doesn’t want to do that.

 

After her talk with Ducky Charlie decides that she wants to get some air and get her head a bit clearer again, so she calls Tony and says that she’s just going outside for a walk and coffee. With hearing just Tony’s end of the conversation and guessing who was on the other end of the phone, when Tony opens his desk drawer to get his gun out he and Gibbs just do their usual silent talk with their eyes as Gibbs says non verbally “Go, be with her.” So Tony does do just that. He finds her at the coffee cart and after getting himself one as well and then paying for both as they walk away from there he says “From what I’ve gone through I think that you may be right and he is a rogue agent or something.”

She replies “I found some news reports earlier about his brother Simon having gone missing and by the look of things it was around the time when we first met. So I was thinking that if it was possible he and Simon could be identical twins, and if it was could they have swapped places and that he is really Simon having taken his place. I just put that theory to Ducky and he has said that it could be possible that had happened, especially if he made the personality changes and also made sure that distinguishing marks were covered up so that their parents couldn’t even tell the difference between the two of them. But of course the only way that we would be able to tell that is from testing his fingerprints and DNA against the ones that are on file or of course testing the kids. But I don’t really want to bring them into things as much as that unless I really have too. Then of course how do we go about proving that this has happened as well?”

He answers “I promise you that we will find a way of proving it all for you and will find out the truth. Where did the disappearance happen?”

She replies “It was in Baltimore.”

He says “And that was where I was a cop and detective before joining NCIS. I’ve still got some contacts there on the force so I’ll see if I can get the case files from them for us to look at. You never know we may just end up solving that case as well.”

She replies with a sigh “I really hope that we can, as I think I would like to get closure on this for everyone’s sake. Not only that I would also like to find out how his parents hadn’t known about the switch or even why I was never told about this missing brother.” After that the two of them head back inside and work on their own things. A little while later she receives an E mail from Tony saying about what he’s got so far and that the rest of the files will be arriving later on.

 

For lunch she and Gibbs pop back to the house again because of her deciding that she wants to tell him about things and he suggests that it might be more private to do it that way. After he gets them something to eat and they sit at the table, she at first stays quiet before finally saying “I think that Nick might not be the person that I think he is.”

He asks her “How do you mean?”

 

She answers “Well I’ve been going through all of my old files and things like that and I’ve found that there are some quite big inconsistencies in our reports, not only that some of his reports feel like they’ve been written by someone who’s not really that sure how to write them. I have a feeling that he may either be not the person I think he is or just a rogue agent. I spoke to Tony about it and he’s also looked through things and is thinking the same as me about it. Anyway this morning we also discovered that Nick had a brother who disappeared years ago now, well it was not long after the first time that me and Nick just met briefly and I’ve never known a thing about this brother. I suspect that possibly this brother did something to Nick and has taken his place. As this brother went missing in Baltimore Tony has got in touch with some of his contacts there and we’re just waiting to get the things from the case sent here.”

Gibbs takes her hand and says “I’m sorry this has happened and if you want to just keep it between the three of us for now then I will cover for you with the others, especially as we will need as much evidence as possible to prove your theory so that we can charge him with anything. I’ll clear you and Tony to only work on this aspect of the case and I will help the two of you where I can. We’ll get together here when you’re putting the kids to bed, that way once that’s done we can go over everything in peace together. So be honest with me, how are you feeling.”

She answers “I honestly don’t know. Seeing if it is what we think it means that my life has been a lie and I’m confused about what will happen next. And even though I’m already guessing that this is going to end up in a divorce most probably. Can I honestly cope with being a single mom and still do the job that I really love doing? Most of all I feel really angry at the possibility that I’ve just been played.” The emotions then get to her and she both bursts into tears and as he takes her into a hug she starts to hit out, which he takes despite how hard some of the punches are. 

Once she finally settles a bit and he lets go of her he says “You needn’t worry about things ending in a divorce as I will be here to support you through everything, and I’m more than certain that due to the circumstances of things you may find that you will be granted a quick divorce, so that things won’t be long and drawn out. You may even find that we may be able to get the papers and things drawn up ready in advance so that we just serve him with them on the point of his arrest. I’m your father and I know that we’ve only just found each other, but I do really love you and the kids and I will be here with you to help you through everything no matter what. You will also always have a home here for both you and the kids, so you will never ever have to be alone. When Vance cleared you to become a temporary member of the team he did also say that you were welcome to become a permanent team member at anytime you wanted to. So when all of this is over you do have the option to do that and I’m sure that we’ll be able to sort something out care wise for the kids so that you can carry the job on, so don’t worry about anything.”

She replies “Thank you and I do love you too, and thank you for saying about us all being together for the kids bed time, because I think I will probably need you then after I’ve spoken to him on the phone. I felt sick last night after talking to him and that was just from being suspicious about him and I just have a funny feeling that today will probably end up being even more difficult. The only thing that I don’t really understand with all of this is why does he feel like he needs to protect us. Especially as surely he knows that things will have to come out at some point.”

Gibbs says “It’s probably because in a way he does really love you and the kids. But probably in a way as well though that he could live is whole life in this lie too. And most probably would have succeeded with it if it hadn’t been for Stefan being so intent on his revenge. And with that I promise that I will keep you updated with everything, and will also shout if we do need you to help with anything on that case. Anyway if you want to go and get freshened up we’d better head back again.”

She then gets up and before disappearing upstairs she gives him a hug and says “Thanks dad for being here, as I don’t think that I could’ve got through any of this without you.”

He gives her a peck on the cheek and says “I will always be here for you, whenever you need me.”

 

When the case files arrive from Baltimore Tony E mails her and they head down to the evidence garage together, they also have a bit of a surprise when they find that they have four big boxes with everything in it. When Gibbs finds them trying to struggle it all into the elevator to take upstairs he tells them to stop and he’ll see if he can find somewhere private for them to work through it all. When he comes back he helps them into the elevator with things and they only go up one floor, where he has managed to get them a small office space to use, which also has a couple of computers in it and a phone. So it means that they don’t have to go upstairs to the bullpen unless they really have too. After leaving them with everything Tony then says “So how are we going to do this?”

She replies “I think the easiest thing might be to make a big table in the middle and then unpack everything onto it. Then we can sort things out and as we have room let’s make it into a big case incident room, that way we can put what we need to up as we sort it out.”

He then says with some slight concern to his voice “Are you sure that you’re going to be ok with having pics and things up, won’t it get difficult for you?”

She sighs and replies “It probably will do. But I also think that in a way it may be easier to help me accept things if our theory is right about him. Because I can think of him rather as a suspect than the man that I think he is.”

 

By the end of the day the two of them have worked really hard and have got a fair bit sorted up and up on the walls along with maps and also CCTV stills. After she put’s the final picture up on the wall, she steps back and starts rubbing her neck with her hand, Tony then says “Here let me.” And starts to massage her neck and shoulders as he does it he adds “I think that we should call it a day, you’re getting tired and very tense.”

She replies “I’m not surprised with everything that’s going on at the moment. But hopefully working on this will help me to put the past behind me.”

He then says with a smile “And the start of a new life, if you end up coming here to live.”

She replies “If I’m going to put the past behind me, then I most probably will do.”

 

When she and Gibbs get back home later but the kids haven’t been bought back yet, they also find a delivery on the doorstep of flowers and a card from Nick for him and Charlie’s anniversary. As Gibbs sees them he says “I think he had a chance of delivering them after we left this afternoon.”

She sighs and says “I know what I’d really love to do with them, but I know that for now we have to keep the pretence up that we haven’t got a clue as to what’s going on. So I know that I’ve got to put them in a vase and have the card on display just in case he looks in at anytime to see if I’ve done it. The main thing is at least they only need to be up for a couple of days or so.”

They then go in and as she starts to sort them out and with the card she just opens it and puts it up without looking at it, while she does it Tony comes in and Gibbs says “Well I do have some good news for you. I hope you don’t mind but you’ll also have to be on your own first thing in the morning as we’ll be late. I’ve managed to sort out an appointment with a lawyer. That way we can at least get some things straight and at least have some idea of how things should go.”

She smiles and says “Thanks Dad.”

While Tony says “It’s ok as I can manage. I’ll carry on doing what we were today and catch you up with it once you get in.”

The door then comes crashing open announcing the kids arrival home with Bishop, the two of them come running straight to Charlie and she bends down to give them both a hug. After the hug she then notices the papers they have in their hands so she says “What have you two been drawing?” So Rosie says that it’s presents for Tony.

As he joins them and says “What is it?”

Andrew then beams with pride as they hand them over to him as he then says “its mommy giving you the black eye.”

Charlie chuckles and says “You two are terrible.” Before she and Tony then smile at each other and he says “I don’t mind, but at least I now have a reminder of it.”

 

Later on when Charlie gets the kids ready for bed Tony helps her, and then as the phone goes for Nick’s call she just automatically hands it over for the kids to answer it. Once they’ve had their turn and she takes the phone off them, she goes into her bedroom for some privacy and Tony follows her. When she sits on the bed, he joins her and then takes her hand, which she actually finds does help to keep her more centred and grounded as the two of them talk on the phone. When she then ends the call she just chucks the phone away and breathes a big sigh of relief, she then says “Thanks for that as it helped to keep me going. I just hope that it all sounded convincing though.”

Tony who has still got hold of her hand gives it a squeeze and replies “I think that you did sound convincing. If you want me to be here every night for the call I will be here by your side until all of this is over.”

She says “Thanks because it did help me to have something else to focus on, although I was also trying to concentrate on not squeezing your hand too hard, so that I didn’t give you another bruise for the kids to tease you about.”

He says “I don’t mind really, just remember that I love you as a friend, not just as work colleagues and you can turn to me at anytime that you need to. Even if I’m not here and it’s in the early hours all you have to do is call me.”

She gives him a peck on the cheek and replies “I love you too as a friend, thanks Tony. Now I think that I might need a drink, so let’s go downstairs.”

 

They do just that, go downstairs and get a drink for each other, when Gibbs later joins them from having been in the basement he says “So how did the two of you get on with sorting out the case?”

Tony replies “Ok, we managed to get about two of the boxes cleared, just got the two more to do.”

Charlie then adds “We’ve got virtually all the photo’s and maps up. And I think that mostly in the last boxes it’s the paperwork and case files, which we’ll start going through.”

Gibbs says “So hopefully by this time tomorrow night you’ll be starting to get something? You can tell me then what you’ve got, that’s if I don’t get the chance of popping down to see you at some point tomorrow.”

Charlie says “I should think that we will do and I will be so glad when we do start getting some answers to things. Anyway I think that I’m going to have a soak in the bath.” She gives them both a peck on the cheek and goes off for her ba


End file.
